Farmer freed after being trapped under a rock for 5 days

  • Louis Strydom, 38, discovered under large boulder near his farm in South Africa
  • Rescuers thought he was dead but on closer inspection found he was still alive
  • He suffered from severe dehydration but has pulled through after the ‘miracle’  

A farmer who went missing for five days has been found alive under a rock.

Louis Strydom was discovered under a large boulder on land near his Omdraai farm near the town of Bethlehem, which is in the Free State province of central South Africa.

The boulder had a gap underneath it that was just big enough for him to fit in.

South African media reported that missing persons group the South African Support Initiative and civil rights group AfriForum worked together to find the missing 38-year-old.

Louis Strydom was discovered under a large boulder on land near his Omdraai farm near the town of Bethlehem, which is in the Free State province of central South Africa

The operation to medically stabilise Strydom and rescue him from under the rock took three hours. Pictured: The unlucky farmer being rescued 

The operation to medically stabilise Strydom and rescue him from under the rock took three hours. Pictured: The unlucky farmer being rescued 

After he was reported missing, rescuers searched the area where he was thought to be and eventually found his vehicle.

From there they found a set of footprints and tracked Strydom to his rocky prison.

Paramedics (pictured) rushed him to the Mediclinic Hoogland hospital in Bethlehem, where he is still recovering from a severe case of dehydration

Paramedics (pictured) rushed him to the Mediclinic Hoogland hospital in Bethlehem, where he is still recovering from a severe case of dehydration

AfriForum chair Isolde Laesecke said rescuers feared they were too late to save the farmer’s life when they first found him.

But a closer inspection revealed that he was still alive, prompting paramedics to be called.

The operation to medically stabilise Strydom and rescue him from under the rock took three hours.

Paramedics rushed him to the Mediclinic Hoogland hospital in Bethlehem, where he is still recovering from a severe case of dehydration.

Remarkably, however, he was found to have no external injuries.

Laesecke said: ‘We understand that the man was trapped under the rock for up to five days, with no food or water. It is a miracle that he is still alive.’

There was no word on why Strydom had crawled under the rock in the first place or why he had been unable to get out. 

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk